Coffee grinder for the shop

[Dennis Dibala]

Sorry if this has been discussed before but I did a search and didn't find it. My favorite type of turning is the odd shaped, rustic, live edge, sometimes very old wood pieces. Those often have wide cracks or other voids that I may leave or may fill, depending on the location in the piece and if the void adds or detracts from the overall look. I know a common fill is CA glue and coffee grounds and I do employ that. But sometimes a repair with the same wood is better but there are only shavings and no fine dust to use. That's where the shop coffee grinder comes in. A while back I bought a burr grinder and thus retired my old spinning blade grinder but it was only retired from coffee duty. I now use it to reduce shavings into fine grain fill material. Just gather up a handfull of the shavings from the workpiece and a minute or two in the grinder make nice fine fill to use with CA glue. If you don't have an old one, they can be bought pretty cheap.

Some of you probably already have thought of this butmaybe it will come in handy to someone.

 

[robo hippy]

I used to save the dust from my drum sander. Take the hose off, and tap the end on some plywood. Got more than I needed. Cherry and walnut worked the best. Dust from the table saw was a bit coarse.

robo hippy

 

[John Torchick]

Reed, good idea. Recycling at its best!

 

[Dennis Dibala]

I've done that too but sometimes you just want a closer match to the wood you have on the lathe such as when I was recently turning some Red Cedar.

 

[musky]

I will only use coffee grounds as a last resort option. Will use wood shavings, or saw dust first, if at all possible, and preferably wood shavings. Just pack them in tight with a pick. End result is a much more natural look. Will use coffee grounds if I have to, but they give a muddy, peppery look, that is very out of place. They are convenient, but there are better options, especially in larger voids.

 

[Dennis Dibala]

I use coffee grounds if the piece has natural dark features such as the core of knots or deep heavy spalting. Sometimes the coffee grounds actually blend in well. Depends on the wood.

 

[Brian Nowak-Thompson]

chili powder in epoxy works pretty well and comes in different shades of red. I also add a drop or two of brown dye. Smells nice when you sand it.

 

[John Snow]

The coffee I drink is quite oily (espresso roast). Does that interfere with the CA glue?

 

[Roy Martin]

When you reach my age, you use a lot of prescriptions. I run turning dust, run it through a coffee grinder and put it into empty prescription bottles. That gives me an assortment to us to match or contrast with other turnings. I even re-grind coffee to make it finer. It helps take away some of the flakey look of regular coffee grounds. The coffee grinder grinds everything to a finer powder that almost disappears whin packed tight then applying thin CA.

 

[John Legg]

When you reach my age, you use a lot of prescriptions. I run turning dust, run it through a coffee grinder and put it into empty prescription bottles. That gives me an assortment to us to match or contrast with other turnings. I even re-grind coffee to make it finer. It helps take away some of the flakey look of regular coffee grounds. The coffee grinder grinds everything to a finer powder that almost disappears whin packed tight then applying thin CA.

Finally, a good use for all of my empty bottles. Thank you for this!

 

[Dave Hulett]

What I have been doing is to take a scrap piece of whatever wood I am trying to fill. I put coarse sandpaper on my ROS which has a dust bag on it. First I clean out the dust bag thoroughly. Then put on some coarse sandpaper and sandi for 3-5 minutes depending on how much I need. I empty the dust bag into a small plastic disposable container, like you might have for a little sauce in your lunch bucket... 50 of them at the grocery store for a couple bucks... and keep what I don't use for the next time.

But I like the coffee grinder idea. we have one that hasn't been used in years... I think I'll commandeer it if the boss doesn't see me.

 

[hughie]

I have one and it does the job ok. But it struggles some with hardwood especially the ebony I have. So I often use 80grit sand paper and make the filler manually.

 

[Tom Gall]

From a discussion in Oct. 2018:

Whenever I need matching dust (or contrasting) I use the bandsaw. I use an index card or postcard (or other heavy paper) and make a temporary zero clearance cut in the paper. Take your wood species and then make numerous small kerfs in the wood. The bandsaw table will soon be covered with dust ... continue until you have more than you will need. Gather/scrape it up with the edge of the same card. I have a 6 tpi blade but any blade will work. Try it - you might like it.

 

[Tim Starliper]

When you reach my age, you use a lot of prescriptions. I run turning dust, run it through a coffee grinder and put it into empty prescription bottles. That gives me an assortment to us to match or contrast with other turnings. I even re-grind coffee to make it finer. It helps take away some of the flakey look of regular coffee grounds. The coffee grinder grinds everything to a finer powder that almost disappears whin packed tight then applying thin CA.

Not sure what your age is, but I have a lot of prescriptions too, it seems

I do the same thing - after I finish turning, whether I need it or not I take a fistful or two of shavings, put them in a coffee grinder I bought specifically for this purpose and grind away. 30 - 45 second bursts, 3 or 4 times and I have a lovely wood powder. Into a bottle it goes, to be marked with the species so I know what it is down the road. Like you mentioned, Roy, pack it in, soak it with a little thin CA, and the smaller fixes often simply disappear. I am not a coffee drinker, nor is anyone else in the house (unless you count the fancy stuff you buy in bottles or the stuff in those Keurig machines - my eldest loves that sort of thing). There are no leftover grounds to use, and nobody grinds coffee. Went on Amazon and found an inexpensive grinder that works perfectly for my needs.